Subject: Fw: [rec.games.board] "German" game FAQ Geenius at Wrok wrote in message ... Archive-name: games/board/german Disclaimer: Approval for *.answers is based on form, not content. THE REC.GAMES.BOARD "GERMAN" GAME FAQ v1.21 (c) 2000 by Keith Ammann QUESTIONS 1. What are these "German" games I've been hearing about? 2. What characterizes a "German" game? 3. Which ones should I get? 3a. A friend introduced me to ___. Will I like ___? 4. Where can I find them? 5. What is the Spiel des Jahres? What is the Deutscher Spielepreis? 6. What does that name mean? How is it pronounced? 7. Why Germany, of all places? 8. Hey! I bought this game you told me to buy, and the rules are in German! ANSWERS 1. What are these "German" games I've been hearing about? "German" games are a genre of board and card games that has recently become popular in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom and elsewhere. They are commonly called "German" games because most of them -- including the ones by which many players have been introduced to the genre -- are designed and produced in Germany. However, some "German" games come from France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Sweden, the United Kingdom or the United States. In its end-of-year roundup, Games magazine refers to the genre as "family strategy," which neatly sums up these games' crossover appeal. 2. What characterizes a "German" game? "German" games are defined by what they aren't almost as much as by what they are. They aren't simplistic, as are many games produced for the U.S. mass market. They are not rules-heavy, as are many games produced for the U.S. hobby market, nor do they take an inordinately long time to play. They are not wargames, owing in part to Germany's post-World War II stigma against militarism in popular culture. As for what they are: They are attractive, with a lot of attention paid to quality of components (often referred to as "bits" by aficionados) and graphic design. They are accessible, with rulebooks that top out around six pages and typical playing times of 30 to 90 minutes. They are easily grasped by older or smarter children. They are involving, both strategically (there are always decisions to be made) and socially (players are not left out of the action when it's someone else's turn). They contain unusual and innovative play mechanisms. And they're also a little expensive and hard to find compared with American mass-market games, largely because they haven't been widely promoted or distributed outside a core community of hobby gamers and the rec.games.board newsgroup. Most who play them agree that they're worth the cost and effort to acquire them. Finally, they're nearly always credited. That is, the designer's name is printed on the box and is often a selling point. This is in contrast with most games in the U.S. market, for example, whose designers either remain anonymous or are buried in the back of the rulebook. 3. Which ones should I get? Depends on your tastes and your budget. Here is a selection of the most popular family strategy games (most of which happen to come from Germany), based on Aaron Fuegi's Internet Top 100 Games List (scv.bu.edu/~aarondf/top100). That list is not (and is not intended as) an objective description of the relative quality of various games, but it is a good indicator of which games are most popular within the gaming hobby -- that is, among the people who play these games and know them well. Prices given are U.S. suggested retail. * Settlers of Catan (Die Siedler von Catan). By Klaus Teuber. Mayfair (U.S.), Kosmos (Germany). $35. If any game can claim to have singlehandedly opened the international market to German games, it's this one. It's simple enough to learn by watching others play, complex enough to pump up its replay value. The object: Outpace your opponents at settling a (formerly) uninhabited island by gathering, trading and consuming commodities (wood, bricks, stone, grain and -- this is the stroke of genius -- sheep!). The board is made up of illustrated cardboard hexagons that can be rearranged for a new experience every time. Several expansions are available, the most popular of which is Seafarers (Seefahrer, $35), which lets you move around from island to island. * Tigris & Euphrates (Euphrat & Tigris). By Reiner Knizia. Mayfair (U.S.), Hans im Glück (Germany). $50. This is the upper end of the genre with regard to complexity and length of playing time, but it's praised by many as the most strategically sophisticated. The object: Triumph over your neighbors as you sow the seeds of civilization in the fertile crescent. Victory is determined by your ability to accumulate points in four different categories at once -- whoever has the highest lowest score wins! E&T is what's known as a "tile-laying game," meaning that one of the elements of play is the placing of tiles on the board. Knizia is probably the single most popular German game designer; he is certainly one of the most prolific. His game Samurai (Rio Grande/Hans im Glück, $40), set in feudal Japan, shares the mechanisms of tile-laying and multiple-category scoring. * El Grande. By Wolfgang Kramer and Richard Ulrich. Rio Grande (U.S.), Hans im Glück (Germany). $40. This pair have put out a number of games involving the distribution of pieces around the board for the purpose of amassing "influence." El Grande is the earliest in this series. The object: To curry favor with the king in medieval Spain. To gain influence, you have to get soldiers ("caballeros") onto the board. But the system for bidding on action cards, which allow you to pull various stunts in the hopes of gaining the upper hand, poses a dilemma: The more likely you are to get the action card you want, the fewer caballeros you can raise. In addition, a movable pawn representing the king freezes the action wherever it's placed, because you can't let the king see what connivers you all are! There are also several El Grande expansions, which Rio Grande is marketing in the United States as one $25 set. * Modern Art. By Reiner Knizia. Mayfair (U.S.), Hans im Glück (Germany). $30. Another of the "first wave" German games (along with Settlers), Modern Art is built around an ingenious auction mechanism. The object: Make a pile of dough by buying and selling works by several pretentious painters. But you have to judge whether you'll make more money by collecting the works of a popular artist and cashing in on them or by being the one who sells them at outrageous speculative prices. A fast-moving game with a lot of appeal for "non-gamers." * Tikal. By Wolfgang Kramer and Michael Kiesling. Rio Grande (U.S.), Ravensburger (Germany). $45. This game takes the influence-building of El Grande, dumps the action cards and tacks on a scoring method in which you're never 100 percent sure when you'll get to collect your points, so you always have to be on your toes. The object: Amass prestige by digging up Mayan relics in the Central American jungle. To get the points, however, you'll have to have laborers keep watch on the sites you're excavating, lest one of your rivals swoop in and grab the credit for himself. A limited number of "action points" each round keeps your options few and hard to choose from. More strategic and abstract in feel than many family strategy games. The same design team is responsible for Torres (Rio Grande/FX Schmid, $40), which combines the influence-building, the scoring rounds, the action cards, the limited action points and the movable king and throws in a funky scoring system based on both how broad and how tall you can build the castles that give the game its name. * Through the Desert (Durch die Wüste). By Reiner Knizia. Fantasy Flight Games (U.S.), Kosmos (Germany). $38. Another tile-laying game, only in this case you lay the tiles before the game starts. The object: To control land in the desert by surrounding it with your caravans. The caravans are made up of pastel plastic camels, the sort of oddball design decision (cf. the sheep in Settlers) that makes so many German games irresistible. * Ursuppe. By Doris Matthäus and Frank Nestel. Doris & Frank (Germany). Import only; no standard U.S. list price. Speaking of oddball, how about a game in which you play amoebas eating each other's excrement? The object: Outlive all your one-celled competitors, either through strategic evolution or relentless multiplication. (The name of the game means "Primordial Soup.") * Bohnanza. By Uwe Rosenberg. Rio Grande (U.S., coming soon), Amigo (Germany). $15. The leader of the pack among "German" card games. The object: Make money by raising and selling different kinds of beans. This one's perversely hard to explain but very easy to learn and play, making it another favorite among non-hobbyists. (The name is a pun on the German word for "bean.") These are the "stars," but there are many, many other popular and easily obtainable family strategy games, including Union Pacific (Alan Moon, Rio Grande/Amigo, $40), Medici (Knizia, Rio Grande/Amigo, $30), Löwenherz (Teuber, Rio Grande/Goldsieber, $40), Elfenland (Moon, Rio Grande [coming soon]/Amigo, $35), Roborally (Richard Garfield, Wizards of the Coast, $40) and Ra (Knizia, Rio Grande/Alea, $35). The majority are imported or reprinted by three companies: Mayfair Games, Rio Grande Games and Jeux Descartes/Eurogames (which publishes several games not listed above). 3a. A friend introduced me to ___. Will I like ___? Family strategy game designers shamelessly pillage mechanisms from both their own games and others'. This results in a number of games' having a similar feel. If you like the feel of one game, you may enjoy another that shares the same mechanisms. Here's a guide to mechanisms commonly found in family strategy games: "Colonizing" Settlers of Catan, Löwenherz, Through the Desert Tile-Laying Tigris & Euphrates, Samurai, Rheinlander, Metro, Streetcar, Entdecker, El Caballero, Drunter & Druber, Ta Yü Multiple-Category Scoring Tigris & Euphrates, Samurai Limited Choice of Actions Löwenherz, Tikal, Torres, Medieval Merchant, Get the Goods Scoring Rounds El Grande, El Caballero, Tikal, Torres, Get the Goods, Freight Train, Modern Art Auctions/Bidding Modern Art, Medici, High Society, El Grande, Tikal (optional rules), Ra, Union Pacific Exotic Theme Through the Desert, Samurai, El Grande/El Caballero (same theme), Tikal, Medieval Merchant, Ra Negotiation Chinatown, Rette Sich Wer Kann, Bohnanza, Quo Vadis If this approach strikes you as high-risk (and well it may, given the price tags that these games usually carry), visit the Board Game Recommendation System at 146.115.120.84:8000 (yes, that's a Web address). The BGRS takes input on which games you like and dislike, matches your tastes with those of other registered users and provides recommendations based on those users' opinions. The results are fairly reliable. (Mainstream games and old-school hobby games are included in the system as well.) 4. Where can I find them? Not at Toys 'R' Us, bro. Typically, family strategy games, especially the imported ones, are available only through hobby stores (the ones that also sell wargames, role-playing games and/or collectible card games) and "specialty" game stores (the ones that also sell traditional games, such as chess, backgammon and go, as well as more mainstream family games). If you're looking for a particular game, check the manufacturer's Web site for a retail store near you. (Because I'm writing this FAQ, I get to plug my favorite: the Old Game Store, Manchester, Vt., 800-818-GAME.) If there's nothing close by, try one of the following online retailers: Boulder Games, www.bouldergames.com Fair Play Games, www.fairplaygames.com Funagain Games, www.funagain.com Seriously Fun Games, www.seriouslyfungames.com Sundown Games, www.sundowngames.com Secondhand games are frequently offered for sale on rec.games.board.marketplace. 5. What is the Spiel des Jahres? What is the Deutscher Spielepreis? Board games are a big enough industry in Germany that awards are given out. The Spiel des Jahres ("Game of the Year") is a juried industry award, sorta like Cannes. The Deutscher Spielepreis ("German Game Award") is primarily a critics' award, sorta like the Golden Globes. Most of the games listed above are either winners or nominees of one or both awards. You can look up past award winners and current nominees at www.spiel-des-jahres.org (English, German) and www.kmwsspielplatz.de/spielarchiv/indxtemp.html?/spielarchiv/dsp.htm (German only). 6. What does that name mean? How is it pronounced? A lot of gamers refer to German games by their German names. Here's a handy guide for English speakers (pronunciations, especially of umlauted vowels, are approximate; some of these games' English editions go by different names, as noted): (Die) Siedler (von Catan) [dee ZEED-ler fawn ka-TAHN]: (The) Settlers (of Catan) Seefahrer [ZAY-far-er]: Seafarers Städte & Ritter [SHTAYT-uh oont RIT-ter]: Cities and Knights Die Siedler Kartenspiel [dee ZEED-ler KAR-ten-shpeel]: The Settlers Card Game El Grande König & Intrigant [KER-nikh oont in-tree-GAHNT]: King and Conspirator Grossinquisitor & Kolonien [GROSS-in-KVIZ-i-tor oont ko-lo-NEE-en]: Grand Inquisitor and Colonies Durch die Wüste [DOORKH dee VISS-tuh] (not "Durch die Wurst"!): Through the Desert Ohne Furcht und Adel [OH-na FOORKHT oont AH-del]: Fearless and Ignoble (a pun on the German phrase "Ohne Furcht und Tadel," which means "Fearless and Irreproachable"; a.k.a. Citadels) Ursuppe [OOR-zoop-puh]: Primordial Soup Löwenherz [LUR-ven-hayrts]: Lionheart (absolutely not to be confused with Hasbro's ultra-crappy Lionheart!) Kontor [KOHN-tor]: Countinghouse Kraut & Rüben [KROWT oont REE-ben]: Cabbage and Beets Pfeffersäcke [FEFF-er-ZECK-uh]: Peppersacks (a.k.a. Medieval Merchant) Giganten [gih-GAHN-ten]: Giants Rette Sich Wer Kann [RET-tuh ZIKH ver KAHN]: Every Man for Himself Kuhhandel [KOO-hun-del]: Horse Trading Hol's der Geier [HOHLSS der GUY-er]: The Heck With It (a.k.a. Raj) Dampfross [DUMPF-ross]: Iron Horse (a.k.a. Railway Rivals) Entdecker [ent-DECK-er]: Discoverer Verräter [fer-RAY-ter]: Traitor Tal der Könige [TAHL der KER-ni-guh]: Valley of the Kings Flinke Pinke [FLINK-uh PINK-uh]: Quick Cash (a.k.a. Quandary) Putsch [rhymes with "butch"]: Uprising Adel Verpflichtet [AH-del fer-FLIKH-tet]: Noblesse Oblige (a.k.a. By Hook or by Crook) Igel Ärgern [EE-gel AIR-gern]: Mad Hedgehogs Klunker [KLOONK-er]: Jewels Volle Hütte [FOL-luh HIT-tuh]: Full House Wettstreit der Baumeister [VET-shtrite der BOW-mice-ter]: Contest of Architects Druidenwalzer [DROO-ih-den-VAHL-tser]: Druids' Waltz Freibeuter [FRY-boy-ter]: Freebooter Um Reifenbreite [oom RY-fen-BRY-tuh]: By a Tire Width By the way, it's Klaus "TOY-ber," not Klaus "TOO-ber." (Schwarzenegger: "It's not a Too-buh!") Also, Knizia is pronounced "k'NEET-see-a." 7. Why Germany, of all places? The best anyone can surmise, Germany just happens to have a long tradition of game-playing. Combine that with a long tradition of high-quality design and manufacturing, and you have a market for well-designed, well-manufactured games. However, as a number of people have pointed out, the fact that Germany has the most robust adult/family board game industry in the world doesn't mean that board games are a form of mass entertainment in Germany, on par with, say, television. It's a hobby there, just as it is in other countries. It just happens to be a much bigger hobby. 8. Hey! I bought this game you told me to buy, and the rules are in German! Many imported family strategy games are available in translated editions, but many are not. Fortunately, the board gaming community has made a number of rulebook translations available on the Web. The Gaming Dumpster (www.neonate.org) has a large selection of archived rule translations. In addition, most of the companies that import and/or reprint games from other countries have rule translations available for free. -- "I wish EVERY day could be a shearing festival!" -- The 10 Commandments =+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+ Live with honor, endure with grace "I notice you have a cloud of doom. Keith Ammann is geenius@enteract.com I must admit it makes you seem www.enteract.com/~geenius * Lun Yu 2:24 dangerous and sexy." ----------